


Draconine Park

by the_actual_letter_n



Category: Jurassic Park - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Dragons, Established Relationship, Gen, Jurassic Park AU, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-22
Updated: 2015-06-22
Packaged: 2018-04-05 13:07:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,893
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4180932
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_actual_letter_n/pseuds/the_actual_letter_n
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Champion Steven Stone is invited to Kumori Island to advise a group of scientists who claim to have brought the long-extinct Dragon-type Pokemon back to life. However, conflict soon arises when questions of ethics are asked and unhealthy ambitions start to reveal themselves...</p>
            </blockquote>





	Draconine Park

Wallace was suffering.

He chose to dedicate his life to training water-type Pokemon for a reason. He loved the oceans, he loved swimming and he loved water. He didn't love sweltering heat, scorching sun and coarse, dry, disgustingly orange sand which meant he absolutely, positively didn't love excavation sites. He did, however, love a stone collector which meant he spent much more time surrounded by dryness than he would ever choose to on his own. So, he was suffering.

The site; a flat, rocky patch of empty land a few miles outside of Lavaridge Town, was lined with tents, scaffolding and - most prominently - holes. They varied in size and depth from small, square dips in the sand, barely reaching over the ankle to huge tunnels equipped with wooden stairs and supports. Most of them had little, colourful flags sticking out of them, probably to mark them as empty or containing some sort of interesting discovery, but Wallace had found that they also did a very good job of preventing anyone not familiar with the landscape from tripping and falling flat on their face. If asked, he wouldn't admit how many times it had happened to him and, to his exasperation, almost everyone he had encountered so far had asked.

After the first day filled with sand, tripping, questions, and random gusts of hot wind, he decided that the best way to survive the situation was in a tent; which was the closest thing the damned place had to indoors. He was tempted to base himself in the catering tent, since he figured there would be measures taken to remove sand from an area where food was handled, but the young man responsible for operating the coffee machines turned out to be an archeology student and, coincidentally, absolutely insufferable. Wallace was then forced to retreat to an administration tent which, while more sandy and less comfortable, was usually empty, save for a few occasional visits from the site director who was usually busy out in the field and didn't mind him using her comfortable foldaway chair.

He was sitting in that very chair, fanning himself with a risk assesment and watching a news report on some rare Pokemon sighting in the Petalburg Woods, when a metallic sound of knocking came from outside the tent, muffled by the beige canvas serving as a door.

'Come in,' he said automatically before realizing that it probably wasn't his place to invite people into. The last thing he wanted was to be mistaken for someone who had any sort of idea how to run an excavation site.

The canvas moved aside, letting in a short, blue-haired woman dressed in a pair of lilac coveralls which made her look more like a gardener than a miner. She had a messenger bag slung over her shoulder and a plastic folder in her hand with which she gestured towards Wallace.

'Are you the site director?' she asked, her high-pitched voice softened by a foreign-sounding lilt. Johto, maybe?

'Oh, no, I'm just a visitor,' Wallace muted his PokeNav and pointed at the ID hanging from a lanyard on his neck. 'The director is on the site, I'm afraid.'

'That's fine, I'm not looking for her. I was hoping she would tell me where to find the Champion.'

'Steven?' Wallace raised his eyebrow. 'He's wandering somewhere outside as well. I can message him if it's urgent, lady...'

'Clair,' she introduced herself, extending a glove-clad hand. 'I represent the Johto branch of Grayson Genetics. And yes, please.'

'Wallace,' he stood up and shook her hand, sensing that she might not be the type who would appreciate a gallant kiss. 'Grayson Genetics, that's...'

'You might have heard about us,' Clair placed her folder on the desk and took off her bag. 'We had some news coverage about three years ago when we started a partnership with PSS Labs'

'Oh, yes,' Wallace vaguely recalled some broadcast about PSS supporting controversial projects. He circled the desk and gestured towards the chair, which the woman took. 'Sadly, I can't say I have been keeping up with science recently.'

'That's quite alright,' Clair said with a reserved smile. 'I can't say I've been keeping up with Pokemon battles. When the Champion arrives I will explain everything in detail.'

He nodded and tapped the screen of his PokeNav a few times. The message he sent just read "Clair is in admin tent" which, he was sure, even without explanation was enough to get Steven to abandon whatever rock he was currently poking and come to investigate. Assuming he wasn't buried underneath orange sand somewhere, of course.

'He should be here shortly.'

'Thank you,' the woman nodded. 'Am I right in thinking that you are a member of the Hoenn League?'

'You are,' Wallace affirmed, slightly raising his voice to be heard over the sound of the wind outside. 'I'm a Gym Leader of Sootopolis City. You aren't a trainer, are you?'

'No, I work in chemistry. I have to say, however, that science owes a lot to the battle industry.'

'Really?'

'Records of League level matches are indispensable for deeper understanding of Pokemon's potential. I do think that the best way to know a species is to see it in battle.'

'It's a belief close to my own,' he admitted. 'But I usually hear it from trainers rather than scientists.'

'I know my skills,' Clair offered him another small smile. 'I leave training to those who understand it on a level deeper than analytical.'

'I'm flattered to hear that,' Wallace said with a small bow. 'Might I ask to what exactly you apply your fine skills at Grayson Genetics?'

'I'm a chemist, as I said. My research mostly concerns reconstruction and synthesis of Pokemon eggs.'  
'Synthesis?' Surprise coloured Wallace's voice. 'You mean to say you can create a Pokemon egg from the ground up?'

'Yes,' Clair smirked with a hint of pride. 'Sometimes Rangers find abandoned nests in the wild, containing one or two cracked eggs with the embryos still intact inside. Thanks to my research they can now, in some cases, repair the eggs and let the Pokemon fully develop and hatch. If the damage is more extensive then yes, the embryo can be moved to a synthetic, lab-grown egg. So far, our tests show no significant differences between Pokemon grown in natural and synthesized eggs,' she added, lifting her chin a little.

''Well,' he said. 'I'm sure it's not only my pitiful ignorance of scientific matters that allows me to be deeply impressed by your work.'

Clair smirked again, but before she could answer, another knocking sound came from the outside and the beige canvas lifted again. In came Steven Stone, his usual elegant attire replaced with a grey shirt, heavy boots and a pair of work trousers, all covered in orange dust that was also visible in his windblown hair. He sent a small smile to Wallace and turned his attention to the woman.

'Clair Hollingshead, right?' he spoke. 'I got your letter. Can't say I understood much of it, but...'

'It didn't seem like a matter to discuss in text,' she explained and stood up to shake his hand. 'I'm with Grayson Genetics.'

'I know that,' he said, picking up another chair and unfolding it to face hers. 'What I don't know is... pretty much anything else. You mentioned a joint project with PSS Labs and an... invitation?'

'Yes,' Clair affirmed as they both sat down. She opened her folder. 'As you may remember, Grayson Genetics started a collaboration with PSS a little more than three years ago. Back then we announced an upcoming project that would bring us closer to understanding the history of our planet.'

'I also remember your CEO saying the project needed at least a decade to take off.'

'Shortly after the announcement we were approached by Silph Co. and offered funding and help with personnel. We were able to achieve a lot in a short time thanks to their generosity.'

'Silph?' Steven repeated. 'Since when does Silph fund scientific endeavors?'

Clair offered one of her reserved smiles.

'They're not only a commercial company, you should know. The invention of Silph Scope helped us advance tremendously in the study of Ghost-type Pokemon, not to mention the creation of Porygon...'

'Yes, yes, fair enough,' The Champion raised his hands. 'Seems like they changed management since Devon asked for help with developing the Scuba Gear,' he smiled. 'Go on.'

'Well, I am glad to inform you that the project did take off. We're almost in the last stage.'

'Congratulations,' Steven acknowledged. 'So I assume you can now tell the public what exactly it's going to be. A... "chance to trace the roots of Pokemon", as you put it, seems like a vague thing to be excited about.'

The woman's smile widened, one corner of her lips going upwards and turning it into a smirk again, this time openly proud. She spun her folder on the table and slid it towards the Champion.

'Dragons.'

'Dragon-types went extinct over fifty million years ago.'

Clair didn't answer; she raised her eyebrows and pointed to the folder with a nod. Steven regarded her for a short while, then finally reached forward and lowered his eyes to the documents.

He was silent for a long time, staring at the very first page contained in the plastic covers. He glanced up, meeting Clair's gaze as she observed him with a smile, her fingers folded together in front of her chin. Then he looked back down, slowly raising the paper, allowing Wallace to see the picture that was printed on it.

It depicted a Pokemon, but not one he had ever seen before, not outside of history books. It was slender and avian, with short, solid blue feathers covering its elongated neck and small, round head. The lower part of its body was hidden underneath a fluffy mass of white, cloud-like plumage of its wings, folded against its sides. It was sitting on what looked like an examination table, surrounded by screens of various machines from which thin cables and pipes extended, reaching to the sensors glued to its body. Even in a photograph, Wallace couldn't miss the glint of intelligence in its eyes.

'Altaria...'

'One of many cloned specimens, alive and healthy in our labs,' Clair said, sitting back in her chair. She smiled even wider. 'Among other species.'

Wallace leaned over Steven's shoulder and stared as he reviewed the document, revealing more and more photos with each page.

'Flygon, Kingdra, Goomy, Dratini... But they're extinct.'

'Not anymore.'

The Champion slowly looked up to face her.

'Your letter mentioned an invitation.'

'Yes, it did,' she confirmed. 'Although our project is nearing completion, we are still seeking opinions of experts from all over the world. Our research, of course, started with rocks and fossils, so we think your outlook would be invaluable to the improvement of our work. That's why we would like to invite you to Kumori Island, where our labs are located,' Clair leaned forward and folded her fingers together again. 'You'd be among the first people to lay eyes on a live Dragon.'

Steven regarded her for a long while, looking straight into her eyes - dark blue and glistening with pride - as the wind outside picked up again, howling underneath the walls of the tent.

'Deal,' he said.


End file.
